Evil Editor said...This book reminded me, maybe just in tone, of two books we did earlier this year, Kockroach and Beat the Reaper.
stacy said...It reminded me of Beat the Reaper as well. I liked the ode this book made to pulp fiction. It was a good read.
David Gordon said...good morning everybody....you can stop talking about me behind my back.
stacy said...We'll probably save that for later, David. hee hee hee
Evil Editor said...Thanks for coming. Here's hoping a few more trickle in soon.
vkw said...Hi David, thank you for coming.
David Gordon said...hi....thank you for reading.
Evil Editor said...So, the excerpts from Harry's writing career. Did you write those specifically for this book, or had you already written them?
David Gordon said...Specifically for the book...I briefly tried looking at an attempted prior vampire story but I realized that while they had to seem like excerpts no actual excerpt could work, at least not such a short one.....I needed bits that felt like excerpts but that also stood alone, like little stories
vkw said...Harry is a fascinating character on one hand, I thought he was very billiant, on the other hand, not so much. But, he seemed always quite practical. David, can you tell us more about developing Harry for this novel?
David Gordon said...Well I'm curious about how you mean brilliant and practical...I had the general idea for the plot...a porn writer is approached by a famous prisoner who is a fan...for a long time...but I didn't really feel like writing it...then as time went by I kept sort of thinking of other things....such as the bit about having multiple pulp series going....or using his mom's name...or tutoring...and thinking, oh that could be the same guy....at a certain point I started to get a sense of Harry and his voice in my head then I could write it.
vkw said...Harry did brilliant and practical things - like he always called the cops and he was able to put clues together rather quickly. His relationship with Claire was so charming and lovely. But he was unlucky in love and lived with his mom and I think he could have been a great writer but kind of settled a bit.
David Gordon said...Yes vkw I agree. I wanted a "writer" character who was depressed, broke, kind of feeling like a failure...but who still cared about books etc. It made it more interesting. Like OK, now what does it mean to be a writer? Also making him unlucky in love I think positioned him to be the right protagonist for the creepy adventure he has. Another guy, lets say a ladies man type, would have a whole different story.
stacy said...Harry does seem to get a bit tripped up by what he perceives as his own shortcomings.
David Gordon said...Yes definitely, Stacy. He is tougher on himself than I'd be.
vkw said...Exactly, he was hard on himself even though I think his writing success was quite good.
David Gordon said...If I met someone who'd written all those sci fi and crime books I'd be very impressed.
Evil Editor said...And porn. Don't forget the porn.
stacy said...Yeah, I was working my way around to that in what was hopefully a polite way. : ) I loved how Claire talked him into ghostwriting her papers and totally became his agent. Every writer needs a Claire!
Evil Editor said...Claire was a doll. I have a thing for brilliant girls ever since reading The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie & sequels.
stacy said...Claire was great!
David Gordon said...Haha. Yes, I slowly fell in love with Claire too and kept adding more scenes with her.
stacy said...I liked Dani as well, though she clearly (and understandably) had a few issues. Her line about luggage and "Everyone carries their own" was pure gold. That's so true, especially in relationships.
vkw said...I think he was unlucky in love because his love interest was, well rather shallow and uninteresting. So, he chose unwisely. But, he thought it was about him, even though part of him knew she was shallow and uninteresting. He was a very interesting character.
stacy said...I didn't see Dani as shallow or uninteresting. Given that her twin was brutally murdered, I could totally see how she went the route that she did and how that would have driven her a little crazy. I think Claire was a little off base about Dani's motives—although Dani didn't seem to be totally aware of why she was getting involved with the investigation.
vkw said...I wasn't referring to Dani as being uninteresting, but rather Harry's ex-girlfriend that he still held a torch for. Dani was clearly "not all there", but not uninteresting.
David Gordon said...Regarding Harry and his love life too, I also feel like I focused in a certain, particularly difficult part of his life in order to help the story. I even hold out the possiblity that something could happen with Teresa later. So his depression, his friendship with Claire, his affair with Dani...that might all look different in a few years.
vkw said...Harry's huge character flaw, in my mind, is that cared way too much about what other people thought about him. So, when he thought others looked down on him like his snobbish ex for being a hack writer, he was dissappointed in himself. But when he went to the vampire party or saw people reading his book or when someone shook his hand even though he wasn't a gorrilla size harlem protecter, he felt better about himself and he was bit shocked as well.
David Gordon said...Yes VKW I agree. That's an example of where my view of Harry is not his own.
stacy said...David, did you do any ghostwriting prior to writing this book? I noticed in your bio that you've worked in a lot of different fields.
David Gordon said...Yes! I did some "ghostwriting." No famous people or anything, but I helped all sorts of people write and often rewrite texts, speeches, papers, articles. I wrote ad copy and pr copy and quarterly reports. I edited theses. I also wrote porn. I was an editor at Hustler and Chic and also wrote a lot for Barely Legal. If anyone knows what those are. ;)
Evil Editor said...Of course we do. I'm probably very familiar with your work.
stacy said...Very funny, EE. I actually thought the porn excerpts in the book were hilarious.
David Gordon said...Stacy I'm glad you laughed. Most of the time writing porn, I was really trying to make my friends in the office laugh.
vkw said...That's impressive. Not many people can say they edited theses and wrote porn.
David Gordon said...Haha. Well I always say my resume looks like a maniac's life unless you add -- really a novelist trying to pay rent.
Evil Editor said...Are you working on another Harry/Claire novel, or are you on to something different?
David Gordon said...I am finishing -- he said optimistically -- another book right now. It is a thriller but different, more Hitchcock maybe, I hope, anyway and set in LA.
Evil Editor said...Sounds like Rear Window, but the guy in the back apartment is a serial killer. Every night Jimmy Stewart sees him kill someone else, but no one will believe him.
Evil Editor said...I applaud you for writing a mystery in which there are twins and the live one doesn't turn out to be the dead one. Don't think it's ever been done before.
David Gordon said...Thanks EE. Part of the fun/challenge of writing a "genre" book was figuring out how to deal with the necessary but somewhat stock characters and situations. I decided to just embrace it but then do my best to give everybody some kind of spin.
stacy said...I think you did a good job of bending all the characters a bit.
stacy said...David, this seemed to be an ode to pulp fiction, like that written by Raymond Chandler and Dashiell Hammett. You a fan?
David Gordon said...Oh yes, very much a fan. I love those books and still read a lot of mysteries and crime. I reread all of Chandler while writing this.
Evil Editor said...The contrast between the humor and the horrible things done to the victims . . . just when we think we're in a quirky little mystery, suddenly we're hit in the face with entrails.
David Gordon said...Yes EE I like that sudden switch between humor and horror or just darkness or sadness. I like it in art and also feel like it is true to life.
vkw said...I was disappointed when Harry didn't get to write the novel and didn't become a millionaire. I really liked him and really saw his potential. It just seemed like he should have had a big "win".
David Gordon said...haha well I try to imply that the book you are reading is sort of his "novelized" version of events. That's why I gave actual dates and made up sounding names that he changed "to protect people." But for me his victory is deciding that writing another vampire book is ok too.
stacy said...Nothing wrong with vampire books. The good ones, anyway.
stacy said...The humor came through in the characters and the absurdity of what Harry was doing as a writer (or at least, he seemed to feel it was absurd). I was a bit sad that his professional life didn't change much by the end, but it also felt appropriate.
David Gordon said...Thanks. I struggled with that a lot. And worried about it. I also worried about how long it takes for people to start dying. Haha. But these things were inherent in my idea, there was no way around them, so I just embraced it.
David Gordon said...And like I said, I wanted to stick up for the pulp writers. I actually think Hammett is about as good as it gets.
Evil Editor said...No movie is as true to the novel as The Maltese Falcon.
Evil Editor said...I can't remember another serial killer book in which the serial killer is in jail the whole time. And yet he still gives you the chills and the belief that he's orchestrating everything makes him seem just as dangerous.
stacy said...I agree, EE.
stacy said...About how many months (or years) did you spend writing this novel?
David Gordon said...The book took about 2 years altogether. Writing it, revising it and then later, a few months working with the editor.
stacy said...I totally didn't see X as the second killer.
David Gordon said...Stacy: Oh good! I'm glad you were surprised. That is the sort of thing that is impossible to tell. Nothing is really surprising to me by draft ten or whatever.
David Gordon said...Though I did try to play fair and leave clues.
Evil Editor said...With a name like X, you're pretty much destined to be a serial killer.
David Gordon said...haha Yeah I had fun with the names and titles and such. I take a childish pleasure in that stuff.
David Gordon said...Yes. Well I knew some people would guess, some not, and some don't care, but I wanted to offer up a real mystery with clues, suspects, an explanation etc.
Evil Editor said...No one guessed. A few will claim they guessed. But they're lying.
stacy said...The biggest clue was Y. I kind of smacked my forehead when you revealed who it was. Though in a way I was gratified to see that Harry worked it out first.
vkw said...I was surprised that it was X. I thought it was going to be Z, or A, or B. Then there was always the vague possibility that C. But, figuring out mysteries, isn't my strength. I just figure everyone is guilty until the author tells me otherwise. I do admit I didn't think it was X.
David Gordon said...VKW I agree. I usually lose track or just take the ride myself....or when I guess right but it's not really deduction, just the cynicism of knowing the killer can't be found on page 50 or whatever. I tried to work that into Harry. He writes these books but has no idea how to solve a crime. Then he does.
Evil Editor said...My theory was that the killer was D. The possibility E was innocent was way down on my list, but good that you kept it alive. E could have written to F and ordered him/her to follow Harry around and kill G, H and I.
David Gordon said...Yes EE I definitely tried to present that option. Also A, etc.
fairyhedgehog said...I've just realised that I'd got the time wrong and missed the chat or most of it. Sorry. It's the clocks going back that did it.
stacy said...Yeah, A was the red herring. It's left me wondering why Q.
vkw said...I figured it out about 3/4 of the way through when I was really into the novel and wanted to know who the killer and skipped to the end and read a few pages. then I went back and fitted all the new clues together perfectly. Don't be offended, I read movie synoposis before seeing a movie. Surprise isn't a motivator for me. Yes, I did open my christmas presents before christmas.
David Gordon said...That's ok VKW. My book opens with a passage about peeking ahead so sort of assumed a few people would.
Evil Editor said...It was made clear why M at some point, but now I've forgotten.
stacy said...It was made clear why? I must've missed that.
David Gordon said...Because A is paranoid and ever since P, R.
stacy said...Oh, right. I think that was mentioned at some point in the book.
Evil Editor said...Now that I think about it, if I were Harry, finding N would have made me assume a certain person was the killer, not just add them to my list of possible suspects.
fairyhedgehog said...What struck me most was how real it felt - at the beginning I had to keep checking back as to whether the author really had written all those other books!
fairyhedgehog said...I didn't think I'd get the book read in time but when it came to it I couldn't put it down.
David Gordon said...Thanks FHH! That seems like the perfect reaction to me!
fairyhedgehog said...But I did skip the gory bits. I didn't want to have nightmares!
Evil Editor said...Of course, the REAL reason is so we'll think A is the killer.
David Gordon said...Yes of course EE, I needed red herrings and twists. Though I try to have Harry hint even at that sort of thing too.
fairyhedgehog said...I had no idea "who dunnit" but I didn't mind - I was enjoying the ride. And we were given enough clues that when we found out it was L it was an "aha!" moment, not a "wtf?" one.
David Gordon said...I'm glad FHH. I tried to play fair in that way. I am certainly the artsy literary type but I wanted my mystery to be real one with clues and an answer.
fairyhedgehog said...I loved the bit about "why do we read?" - I dogeared the page so I could find it again, which is something I haven't done in decades! "When I read, the words on the page replace the voice in my head and I cease, for a little while, to be me..." Oh yes.
David Gordon said...Thanks FHH. Really to me this book is almost more about being a reader than a writer.
stacy said...What cracked me up were the little "societies" based on his mother's ghostwriting personality. The only thing that was missing was the fan fiction. : )
David Gordon said...Stacy I had a fantasy of posting Harry's various "series" online and letting other people finish the stories but I dont think I'm popualr enough yet. It would just be sad.
stacy said... although I think it's kind of neat when people make or join groups based on how strongly they feel about a writer.
vkw said...Will we get to read about Harry in a sequel?
David Gordon said...I have no plans for a sequel but I could be swayed by popular demand.
stacy said...Really? I think you did a pretty good set up at the end for a sequel.
Evil Editor said...The four of us don't constitute popular demand, but we're just the four who remembered to show up. Others read the book.
fairyhedgehog said...So, we need a David Gordon fan club to ensure a sequel then!
Evil Editor said...Nero Wolfe and Stephanie Plum started with one book.
David Gordon said...Yes, well I'm writing a new book and it is a mystery, but as much as I love reading series I never imagined characters going on myself. I would be interested in trying. Though when I think Rex Stouts and Simenons....I can't imagine thinking up 50 of these things.
fairyhedgehog said...I enjoyed it too when the narrator tells us that he's come to the part he always dreads "when the plot needs to snap together and resolve itself". (Poor little dogeared book!)
stacy said...Me too. Though I feel that way pretty much all the way through writing a book. : )
David Gordon said...haha yes FHH, that became my solution for the difficult parts to write....I could say, this is a difficult part.
fairyhedgehog said...I'm gutted that I was waiting for the chat to start and it had started. Maths skills are clearly not my strong point.
vkw said...It was a good book and this was a good chat, I feel a tiny bit sorry for those that missed it. Their loss. Thank you for joining us and I really would like to read more about Harry.)
stacy said...The book was a really great read and it's definitely one I'll be passing on to others. I'm glad we got the opportunity to pick your brain a bit. Thanks for chatting with us!
fairyhedgehog said...Thank you so much, David, for coming to chat to us. It's been great reading all your comments and replies.
David Gordon said...Thank you all. I really appreciate it. Most of time we write things and never hear back!
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